Seulgi and the Alfa Romeo drive their front wings side by side, wheels nearly touching with only just a few inches apart as they race down the straight together. Joohyun holds her breath when the red bull driver presses on the throttle turning to a narrow corner. 

 

A dangerous move that could have led to a catastrophic crash but pays off as Seulgi surges past her rival on the exit turn. 

 

The Alfa Romeo tried fighting back but was unable to when Seulgi had already made a car length gap to his car. The crowd goes wild at the move Seulgi did as the team in the Red Bull garage also cheers on for her, unlike Joohyun who lets out a sigh of relief that Seulgi got out safely after such a dangerous move, she takes note to warn the driver to not ever do that again.

 

LAP 22/57

 

SEULGI: I think overtaking will be easy if we go early for the next set. The vibrations are bad and I’m losing lap time. The front-left tyre is really bad after fighting with the Alfa Romeo. Why don’t we box?

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Okay, Seulgi. Box, box.

 

As she enters the pit, Joohyun watches from the garage as the red bull car stops in front to allow the mechanics to take over with their drills and machines. The tyres are changed from medium to hard ones that would last until the end of the race. Another great pit stop from the team who is well known to have the fastest pit stop and continues to hold that record. Her eyes follow the car as it makes its way to the pit lane and exits the pits to join the race. 

 

Seulgi is making her exit at turn 13 while she drives the tyres and brakes up to the right temperature when she was notified by her race engineer that a virtual safety car will be deployed as a car stopped on the side of the track. Giving Seulgi a competitive advantage of having to pit early.

 

Cars in front took a free pit stop to win time but instead handed their position to the only red bull driver on the track.

 

DAVID CROFT, COMMENTATOR: My oh my! This plays well on the hand for Seulgi as cars at the front pit their tyres on, giving the red bull driver the advantage for an easy overtake!

 

Joohyun can tell that the English commentator is amazed with how unpredictable today’s race is. She hears the fans loudly cheering through her headphones as the track once again goes green on the next two laps. 

 

LAP 27/57

 

MARTIN BUNDLE, COMMENTATOR: Quite a load of tension right now from Seulgi Kang, who's trying to pull off an incredible comeback drive right now and she’s going on the inside. Is she gonna risk it?

 

As the commentator finishes his live commentary on what is happening between the drivers, an opportunity for overtaking presents itself when Pierre Gasly, her former teammate in Alpha Tauri, locks up, and lets down his defenses for a split second as he goes off the track.

 

DAVID CROFT, COMMENTATOR: Oh, Gasly has gone sailing on by with a huge lock up and he’s opened up the door for Seulgi who moves up to fourth! 

 

Everyone in the garage started cheering as Seulgi overtook the Alpine of her former teammate, her pit crew shouting, “Come on, Seulgi!” as they watch the race on their screens. Meanwhile, Joohyun couldn’t contain her bounce of excitement because of the great result Seulgi is currently showing for the team and fans.

 

LAP 31/57

 

And Joohyun squeals once more when she sees Seulgi start trailing behind to the car of Daniel Ricciardo. She already overtook Pierre four laps ago which placed her in fourth position, and now has got the DRS to help her breeze past the McLaren car.

 

Joohyun smiles when the screen shows Seulgi’s pit crew clapping their hands with the brilliant overtake she had just made over Daniel Ricciardo. This gives Seulgi the opportunity to run for a podium finish considering that there are still twenty-seven laps left of the race.

 

SEULGI: What is the pace like?

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Seulgi, at the moment, your pace is seriously strong. Keep pushing but mind your turns, we’re using these tyres until the end of the race.

 

Her engineer encourage to give all her best, which somewhat tells her that she has a chance to have a podium finish in this race if she continues to show such incredible race pace from the car until the end of the grand prix.

 

LAP 33/57

 

Seulgi for the rest of the remaining laps was able to maintain her place not until there was a car spinning in turn fifteen damaging the front wing. This could be a sign that a safety car may deploy as the wing went off from the car and into the racing line after a minor crash on the barrier. The yellow flag has been raised as a sign for the car to slow down their pace as there is danger up ahead.

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Safety car deployed. There's just a bit of debris on the last corner on the left hand side of the track.

 

SEULGI: Are we boxing for new tyres?

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Negative. Stay out, stay out. The plan is to stay in position. Stay in position.

 

SEULGI: Copy.

 

While the Red Bull had made their decision for Seulgi to stay out, the Ferrari team were panicking with the unexpected safety car but reacted quickly to the situation. They want to make a cheap pit stop for their drivers to solidify their position of finishing with their driver placing first and second that would help them with the points for the championship, the Ferrari team decided to change both their drivers’ tyres as their strategy.

 

DAVID CROFT, COMMENTATOR: And they’re double stacking at Ferrari. The front right tyre was slow for Charles Leclerc! And for Carlos Sainz even more confusion. Somewhat reminiscent back in Monaco when they tried double stacking costing Leclerc his first win in his home race!

 

MARTIN BUNDLE, COMMENTATOR: They’re not happy with the left front. They’re not happy with Sainz’s left front.

 

DAVID CROFT, COMMENTATOR: Well, they double stacked. They’ve reacted really quickly, Ferrari, and this is costing Sainz. Ohh, His brakes are on fire now as well! They had the wrong compound of tyre on and that’s why they couldn’t send him out again. But now those brakes are overheating.

 

MARTIN BUNDLE, COMMENTATOR: I tell you what, Crofty, he has lost track position to Seulgi Kang who's already making her way to the first corner placing her second.

 

Joohyun watches on her screen as Carlos Sainz shakes his head with his failed pit stop before the camera switches on who Seulg’s cari making her turn on the first corner while her name swaps with Carlos Sainz on the monitor which indicates her placing in second place with the current lap.

 

LAP 34/57

 

With the confusion with Ferrari’s pit stop Charles Leclerc, the man who has been comfortably leading since the first lap, was called for another pit stop because of a mixed tyre with Sainz’s after they double stacked on the previous lap. This is not allowed by FIA, the governing body of auto racing events, and may get a fine, or a warning at least for the mishap they have caused.

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: So, there has been a big problem for Leclerc ahead which made him box again. We are now the lead car, the lead car. Keep your head down.

 

SEULGI: Where are the Ferraris?

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Ferraris are behind the Aston Martin who’s currently 5th. It’s Sainz then Leclerc. They’re both on the medium set. So they will be fast.

 

SEULGI: Understood.

 

Seulgi is calm over the radio as she keeps her head down knowing that the Ferraris still has the tyre advantage considering that all cars in front of the prancing horse are all using older tyres. The victory that Seulgi has been dreaming of can still be taken away from her.

 

DAVID CROFT, COMMENTATOR: And Seulgi Kang who was plumed last, leads the Bahrain Grand Prix. With the ferraris behind, this is really happening!

 

The commentator is in disbelief with the current situation based on his voice. No one expected her to be the one leading the lap when she was down to 20th on the first lap.

 

This could be it for Seulgi, this is her chance for her maiden win, “you can do it, Seulgi.” Joohhyun whispers to herself as she looks into the screen intently watching the race taking place outside the garage.

 

LAP 39/57

 

Seulgi continues to lead the pack behind the safety car for the next four laps and as the lap ends, so does the safety car, the track goes green meaning the race is resuming once again..

 

HUGH BIRD, COMMENTATOR: Safety car in. It will be Go 1. Go 1

 

Seulgi had an amazing restart as the car of Daniel Ricciardo behind is already 2 seconds behind her as she takes the car back to its racing condition. Chasing her first ever grand prix victory.

 

LAP 40/57

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Ok Seulgi, 17 laps to go, 17 and you’ve got nearly a 3 seconds gap to Ricciardo. DRS will be enabled in two lap. But you’re okay behind.

 

SEULGI: Copy.

 

Seulgi continues to lead comfortably knowing that she has made a gap that gets her out of threat from DRS detection.

 

But she still has Charles Leclerc whom she needs to worry about when she was told by her engineer that he had just made the fastest lap last lap and is continuing to do flying laps, at the same time overtaking the cars in front to catch up from Seulgi and claim the victory

 

Lap 42/57

 

The red car managed to overtake Daniel from McLaren with no struggle, proving everyone that he is indeed the fastest man on track as he is already trailing behind Seulgi to overtake her and claim the victory.

 

SEULGI: How are things with Charles?

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: His currently the fastest man on track. 4 tenths faster than you.

 

SEULGI: How is the pace then? Lap by lap? I need it.

 

Seulgi says as she starts to feel under pressure of having the fastest man already behind her after only eight laps since the confusion with their pitstop, everyone can tell, Ferrari had the race pace today. After another three laps of leading and with fifteen laps left, she fears that the victory for her may get taken by the man behind.

 

She continues to drive the pace the car could only give her trying to make more time to make it harder for the man catching up on her in hopes to get her first victory, driving her best to not make the car of Charles Leclerc within a one second distance so that his DRS won’t open.

 

DAVID CROFT, COMMENTATOR: Seulgi Kang after a meteoric drive from the Korean at the front of the field is beginning to feel like Leclerc can still take her victory. Seulgi the wily old fox out there smells her first chance of victory.

 

LAP 49/57

 

Seulgi is under pressure as she looks at her side mirror, she sees the Ferrari car trailing behind her which made her press on the throttle hard to bring out more speed of the car.

 

The gap was 0.5 second which means the Red Bull was under threat for a DRS from the prancing horse and it didn’t help that they’re nearing the DRS zone.

 

HUGH BIRD, RACE ENGINEER: Gap to Lecle—

 

SEULGI: Not now, please, not now.

 

Seulgi cuts her race engineer as she wants to focus on the race. She doesn’t want to add more pressure if she hears how close Charles Leclerc is beh